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Regulating Heat Loss, or Venting the House:

• Adjust your layering as necessary: Remove layers when you exert yourself. While hiking you can probably wear one insulating layer less than what you wear when stationary.
  • If you are exerting yourself more (skiing, snowshoeing, strenuous hiking, ...) you may need to reduce your layers to a wind break and a thin insulating layer (your “foundation” layer, for example)
  • As a general rule, remove insulating layers, but not your outer, windbreak layer, unless the weather is very calm or you are sweating heavily and need to vent your perspiration.
  • Since so much of your body’s heat can escape from your scalp, a simple way to cool off is to remove your toque or replace it with an ear band for a while. If your body or your head become cool, replace your toque immediately.
• Anticipate that your body will cool down when you become less active:
  • If you stop for a break, immediately replace the layers you have removed to prevent yourself from becoming chilled.
  • As soon as you return to camp, replace layers before you get cold.
  • As soon as you return to camp, check your socks. If they are damp, replace them with dry socks.
• Vent perspiration as well as heat: Being able to do this depends considerably on your choice of clothing. This is where avoiding cotton really pays off. Synthetics will allow perspiration to pass through to the next layer.
  • If you have “technical” clothing with venting zips, use them.
  • If your clothes don’t have these bells and whistles, (and most of ours won’t) then use your common sense:
    • Open neck zippers to allow moisture and heat to escape.
    • If you have mesh pockets in your jackets, ... you can open the pockets so that they act as vents.
    • Remove neck gaiters or other clothing which will prevent venting
    • If the weather is calm, remove your windbreak layer, but be cautious of doing this in the wind, as you can quickly become chilled. This can apply to any or all areas of the body.